


Purple Hues

by Peccatium



Category: Borderlands (Video Games)
Genre: For The Moment, Gen, Jack is not that much of an asshole, M/M, Mutated!Rhys, Partners to Lovers, Rating and warnings might change, Rhys has both arms, also no echo eye, surprisingly, there might be smut in later chapters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-14
Updated: 2017-02-05
Packaged: 2018-09-17 11:38:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,434
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9321869
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Peccatium/pseuds/Peccatium
Summary: There is this ancient legend floating around Pandora and only the fewest of the few know it.It says there is a library, containing the knowledge of everything that ever happened, having been made by the powerful Eridians to secure their wisdom and carry it to later generations.When Hyperion scientists find an, until now, unknown creature they bring it back to Helios and with it the first part to finding this unbelievable treasure.As it turns out, things aren't always like theirappearanceand Jack might be getting a little more involved than he originally planned.





	1. Something New

Jack had been sitting comfortably in his chair, with his legs thrown up on the big desk in front of him, when he’d received an ECHO from R&D. Some of the scientists had been down on Pandora to get more skags for testing and they seemed to have found something "new". A creature they have never seen before, they said in their message to him. It had gotten Jack curious enough to go down to the labs himself.  
  
As soon as he entered through the two metal doors, a man stumbled forward and showed him the way, nervously swiping away the strands of black hair back that kept falling into his face. He seemed to have waited for him and Jack wondered how long he would have stood there, if he hadn't decided to show up. Maybe an hour, maybe five.  
  
He was lead in a small room with a big one way mirror giving a good view on the thing on the other side. It looked almost human but it paced around the room on all fours. A long tail sprouted from behind it and sharp claws replaced fingernails, making quiet sounds when hitting the floor as it walked. But the most interesting part was the stone like armour on its chest, thighs and back where the spinal column was located, that seemed to be growing out of it’s skin. Thin lines that glowed in an eerie eridium purple ran through it and separated individual plates for better movement. The tail seemed to be completely made out of it, with a big sharp end. A rugged transition connected the “stone” and the creatures slightly grayish skin.  
  
A few scientists, that were writing down notes, stopped the moment Jack entered.

"So, what is that?" he asked while crossing his arms and nodding in the direction of the creature.  
  
"Em... w-we found it in a cave. No one knows what species it is or if there are more of its kind. We were planning to f-feed and drug it so we can do some tests." one of them explained.

“Ya ever heard of stunning darts, kiddo?” Jack asked sarcastically.

“Well, we tried them… but it always dodged…”

“Dodged? That are some impressive reflexes. Alright then, it’s eating time.”

The man nodded and quickly spoke into his echo com. Shortly after a panel on the roof opened and someone threw meat and some pandoran vegetables and fruits down into the room the creature was in. Jack watched with interest it came closer to them. But before it began to eat, it sniffed at it. Shortly afterwards it growled and moved away, continuing to walk in lazy circles around the room. The scientists scribbled something down.  
  
What they hadn't expected when they looked back up, however, was the creature walking directly up to the window. It put both of his hands on the glass and leaned in so that its nose almost touched the surface.

"It... shouldn't be able to break it." someone said. Jack's hand still moved to his gun if it turned out the thing _could_. After all, no one knew anything about it. Even if there was a one way mirror between them, Jack had the impression that it could see them as he followed its eye movements. He noticed that the beast had heterochromatic eyes, just like himself, except they were brown and blue instead of blue and green.

After a few seconds it retreated. Moving to the middle of the room where it suddenly stood up like a human, still staring at them.

And it changed.  
  
Jack watched with surprise as its tail was getting shorter and shorter until it completely disappeared. At the same time its claws began to shrink as well as the stone armour, only staying over its genital area, and the skin’s previous color faded into healthy looking flesh. It crossed his arms and watched them almost expectantly.

"Impressive." Jack muttered to himself.

The now human creature coughed before speaking in a raspy voice.  
  
"W...Wha...t" Coughing again. "What do you want from me?" It seems to haven’t used its voice in a long time. No, _he_ would be more fitting. _He_ was clearly sentient and, at least for human standards male.  
  
The scientists stared at it with wide eyes, mouth hanging slightly open. Jack couldn't help but crack a small smile at their stupid expression. But he had to say, this was quite a development.  
  
"We want to know a few things about what you are. So how about ya tell us a bit about yourself, pumpkin?" Jack said, while the other people in the room were still too dumbstruck. He always wondered how they even got this job.  
  
"I will gladly do. But not through this wall." he said, motioning his hand to the one way mirror.  
  
\--------  
  
Jack wasn't of course so stupid as to go in there himself. They didn't know what plan their prisoner had. Did he want a hostage or maybe he was trying to steal some kind of information… It didn't really matter to Jack as long as he had the upper hand.  
  
So he had one of the lowly lab rats be equipped with a hidden earpiece and then sent him in. Both occupants of the room were currently sitting on the chairs, that had been brought in beforehand. Jack was able to watch everything through cameras and could give instructions without the prisoner knowing, that was also the reason he was not in the room from before, it was not soundproof.  
  
Until now the prisoner had introduced himself as Rhys and told them that there were, at least by his knowing, no others like him. He was currently describing why.  
  
"My parents were members of one of those Eridium cults. They had their camp in an old and abandoned Eridium refinement station hidden somewhere underground. They ate and injected themself with the material on a daily basis, forcing  me to do the same as soon as I was born. It seems like it somehow mutated me. My parents and everybody else in the cult died of Eridium poisoning when I was seven.", he told them, completely unfazed by talking about his parents death. "I have done a bit of research and asking around until then, but I seem to be the only one with this 'condition'".  
  
Jack leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest in thought. He was familiar with the cults the boy was talking about. It was a throughout stupid idea to consume Eridium in any form, even such a simple task as touching it could result in a violent reaction from the body. And Jack had a whole team of the best scientists working on creating an artificial siren. No method of Eridium exposure was causing anything than pain for the subject. He really wanted to find out what made the boy differ from them. But before he could start tests he had to know something else.  
  
"What abilities have you gained?" the man sitting opposite to Rhys asked, after hearing the instructions given to him.  
  
"Well, you've already seen that my body can change. Adding to that, I'm faster, stronger and all in all my senses are better.", Rhys said, he already knew what he would be asked next.  
  
"How much stronger are you?"  
  
"Lets just say: if you tried to do tests on me without my consent, it wouldn't work." A smile was shown on his face.

Yeah... Jack had expected that, it would have been too easy otherwise, but he still let out an annoyed huff.  
  
"How about a deal?" Rhys suddenly spoke. "As long as the tests are not life threatening or expose me to more pain that I am willing to take, I will agree to them."  
  
Leaning forward to the screen, Jack was studying the expression on Rhys face, while ordering the lab rat to ask a question.  
  
"What’s in there for you?"  
  
"First of all: I am curious. There is only so much you can find out down on Pandora. And secondly: I think it would be more fun than trying to survive in the desert. Of course I have a few other conditions, but we can talk about them later. So, do we have a deal? If not, I want to be taken down to Pandora immediately."

The speaker system suddenly turned on with a click and the voice of the CEO could be heard.  
  
"Alright, kiddo, you got your deal. What are your other conditions?"


	2. Let me tell you the gravity of the situation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some tests have outcomes that no one can predict. Rhys will find himself in one of them and Jack, well, he finds out that there are people he should not mess with.

Most of the other conditions Rhys had insisted on consisted mostly about him not being treated like a guinea pig. He wanted adequate living quarters and at least enough money so he could buy things for basic human needs. Not that he had very high standards, he was from Pandora after all, but food and a few clothes would be nice.

The apartment they had given him wasn't very big, just a small kitchen connected to an open living room, a bathroom and bedroom. Nothing special.

He spent most of his time in the labs though. The scientists of Jacks specialized team for sirens searched for anything unusual. The first thing they did was taking his blood and skin samples. But nothing. He now knew his blood type was 0, interesting, but not really helpful and his DNA was not much different from normal human one, except that is was rapidly falling apart under the microscope, great.

By the sixth day of testing they were not a tad bit closer to finding an explanation and Rhys was exhausted. All his conditions were met but it still took a toll on him. He relished in the feeling of his mattress and cozy blanket every evening.

Rhys sighed as he flopped down onto the bed, not caring enough to change his clothes - they were comfortable. The all black suit and waist coat he had bought a few days ago hugged his lanky body without being too tight and he could easily slip his tail out. It’d became a habit for him after having spent most of his life in his other form, it was easier to survive on Pandora with it. When walking around Helios he of course had to hide it, but being in the company of others was a nice change for once.

He had been alone for the longest time. No settlement wanted to live with a mutant that could kill them with one hand, and even if he hid it, they always found out eventually. He had learned this lesson after everybody in the cult his parents were in had died and he needed a new home. At the time he hadn’t been able to control his body like he could now.

After letting out an annoyed huff at the memory he turned around, staring at the wall. He had tried to fit into countless of those small communities so many times until he had given up. It hadn’t been worth it. He’d been hurt by those he thought of as friends, had been betrayed, hunted, only to realise no one could ever be trusted and he’d stopped even trying. But those experiences had taught him to survive on his own even if the words his “friends” had spat in his face still made his stomach churn.

_“Kill this fucking monster!”_

_“Stay away from me!”_

_“He’s nothing but a freak.”_

_“Go back to where you came from! We don’t want to have an animal living with us!”_

Monster, he thought angrily. Oh _I will show you_ how much of a **_monster_ ** I can be to the next person who calls me that. But he shook his head before he could think any further about it. That was the exact opposite to what he wanted to happen. He was not a monster, a freak, an animal or whatever they might call him. And I don't have to prove that to anybody, he reminded himself.

To stir his thoughts in another direction he thought about the tests tomorrow. The scientists wanted to know how much Eridium he could absorb, a thing he could have never done on Pandora. Eridium was not cheap or easy to find. It would certainly be interesting and the wide range of possible outcomes made him curious and afraid at the same time.  
  
But until then Rhys curled up into a ball under the blanket and slung his tail around himself. He still was surprised how easily sleep came when lying on a proper bed.  
  
\--------  
  
The next day Rhys was sitting shirtless on a solid metal examination table. Tubes filled with purple liquefied Eridium were connected to both his inner elbows. He could feel the mineral flowing through him and being absorbed. The energie he got from it was incredible, his skin prickled with it. He could hear the quiet sound the pen made as it was dragged over paper at the other end of the room and not even the tiny little specs of dirt on the computer screen just behind it escaped his eyes.  
  
Men and women in white coats were standing nervously around, checking data or machinery while others took notes, while Rhys marveled at the effects the Eridium had on him. Nobody wanted to fuck up, not today.

Handsome Jack was going to visit the lab. It had been a week since this project started and everybody knew that he wouldn't be too happy that no results could be shown. Rhys had heard of the man's temper and his violence was no secret either.  
  
He might have been afraid too if he didn't know that he could easily protect himself and with the energie currently surging through his system he doubted that the man was any kind of danger to his person.  
  
Just as he finished the thought the doors opened and the man himself strolled in the room.  
  
"How's it going kiddo?" he asked Rhys with a grin on his face and then continued without waiting for an answer.  
  
"So, I may or may not have peeked at the reports and I've seen that there are no results on ANYTHING what so ever. Which is too bad, because I think I _pay_ you all for finding out why Rhysie here _has no problem with Eridium_ ! Oh, and I don’t have time to waste on all your little excuses: _Handsome Jack, sir, we’re working as hard as we can! We will be find the cause soon! Please don’t kill me!_ And all the other pathetic things your stupid brains could produce. Maybe you're just not _motivated_ enough to do some actual work, _so let's change that_ !"  
  
He took his gun out his holster, pointed it at the nearest person and pulled the trigger. Rhys watched as the head of the man exploded in red, leaving the wall behind him speckled before his limp body hit the ground. Rhys would have been surprised at how easily Handsome Jack was ready to kill probably important employees, if it hadn't been for the drowsiness that suddenly covered his thoughts and made it hard to focus on anything.  
  
It grew worse and worse by the second. His eyes darted around the room while his brain supplied him with all kind of information he couldn't possible know. Like where the shoes of this lab assistant were made, or how four of them liked to meet after hours to play bunkers and badasses together.  
  
As he looked at Jack, pictures of him in a vault shot though his head. Then there was the flouting vault symbol and after that the glowing mark that was now forever edged into his face. Rhys's thoughts wandered to the vault monsters, the Erdidians and their secrets.

He didn't even notice all the eyes in the room were on him.  
  
Jack watched him with curiosity. He walked in front of the table and Rhys eyes snapped up to him. His irises were glowing the color of the Eridium that flowed into his veins.  
  
"Kiddo? You alright?" After getting no answer he waved his hand infront of Rhys face.  
  
"You want to know why the Eridium could mutate me, right?" He suddenly asked. His voice sounded almost normal if it hadn’t been for the second deeper layer that was suddenly added to it, making every word sound more intimidating than it normally would.

“...Yes… “ Jack answered slowly. 

"Well, that's where you're wrong. It was the Library that did it. I had found it a long time ago and had been chosen to be the watcher and keeper of all the knowledge contained in it. To do my duties it altered my DNA. I am not a siren but something much more powerful, thanks to that." When Rhys opened his mouth during talking, an eerie purple light shone out of his throat, making his appearance even more unnatural. Jack eyed him carefully.

“What library?”

“That is none of your business.”

"Well, alright then... How much more powerful are you?"  
  
Just as he finished his sentence the whole Eridium in the room began to glow, matching Rhys's eyes. Jack suddenly felt weightless, his feet and everybody else's lost contact with the floor. The only one who didn't seem to be affected was Rhys who was sitting on the table like nothing was happening at all. The lights began to flickered until they went out completely and the lab otherwise pitch black was illuminated by the Eridium, coating everything in a purple shine.

Rhys's eyes stood prominent and piercing out of the dark. He stared at Jack, who could only hold on to one of the machines that were fastened to the ground to keep himself upright while floating in weightlessness.  
  
"I control matter, gravity and if I wish to even minds. I possess the knowledge of the entire Eridian culture and I hope you understand the meaning of those words, _human_." He boomed, sounding strong and fierce.

After a few seconds in which Jack had no idea what to say the room slowly began to go back to its original condition, setting everybody carefully on their feet.  
  
Jack looked at him in contemplation, after having returned to his powerful stance. If what Rhys had said was _true_ and he _really_ had the knowledge of the Eridians… That information would be priceless. All the things he could do! Finding Vaults! Building weapons! Maybe even control the vault monsters! Whatever was the cost, he _needed it all_ !  
  
His train of thought was interrupted by a nasty sound one of the machines made. It had run out of liquid eridium and the tubes connected to Rhys's arms were now empty. The glow in his irises and slowly subsided and he began to sway as his eyes dropped. A thud erupted when his unconscious body hit the metal table he’d been sitting on.  
  
\--------

Rhys sluggishly woke up. His mind was in a shamble, even having trouble recognizing he was lying in a hospital bed. The throbbing in his head drowned out everything and his whole body ached. He didn't feel the hands on him that were checking the IV's connected to him, only a slight tingle danced over his numb skin at the touch. He just wanted to fall back to sleep and wake back up when everything was better.  
  
Rhys faintly heard voices talking as the numbness wrapped around his mind. He happily accepted the dark engulfing him.  
  
\--------  
  
Everything was nice and colorful. Mild milky white hues wrapped around soft purple, rounding it out, as Rhys felt like he was under water. The colors swam around and formed a room. Even if he’d never seen it, Rhys recognized it as the inside of a vault.  
  
He walked around a little, looking at the faint inscriptions on the otherwise smooth walls that acted almost like mirrors. The writing constantly changed language, sometimes English, but the readable words vanished in mere seconds. There was another language that seemed familiar and the strange symbols it was written in stirred something inside his brain like he _should_ be able to read it.  
  
Rhys saw a glimpse of his own arms and inspected them further. They glitched in and out two forms. One moment his hands had sharp claws the other normal fingers. As he looked behind him the same was happening with his tail, constantly dis- and reappearing.  
  
He tried controlling it so he would be in one form but before he could achieve anything he felt himself fall. Sinking back into the darkness, ending the dream without a warning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes. Yes, the chapter title is a dumb word play. You might see more of those in the future, prepare yourself.

**Author's Note:**

> Please tell me if I made any grammar or spelling mistakes. Thanks : )


End file.
